Talk to text. What a beautiful thing. The spelling might not be perfect. The grammar might not either. And it might look goofy from someone passing by. But it’s fast efficient and really makes you think about what you need to say. If Siri can understand you so will your readers.
Eyes on the road. Period.
Talk to text.
Often effort and personal satisfaction don’t correlate with mass reception and / or success.
A blogger’s post that took hours to write and is, to her, life-changing, doesn’t get many views. Yet, the one she whipped up in five minutes goes viral.
A retail clothing store owner’s winter line will have some winners and losers. But there’s no telling which were studiously chosen and which were last-minute add-ons.
The salesman’s long-term, premier prospect is a high-maintenance bust. Yet, from someone wanting a quote on a Friday afternoon immediately turns into her biggest account.
Fortunately, the effort and personal satisfaction sometimes pleases the masses and / or is successful. Even better, though? Getting up to the plate every single day.
Giving ourselves a chance.
Did you see Senator Cruz’s 21 hour speech? Remember what he said? Zero chance. But will you ever forget the speech? Also zero chance. Why?
Great speeches are not remembered for their words. It’s the feeling. Feelings of hope. Feelings of joy. Feelings of pride.
Or in Senator Cruz’s case, feelings of disgust. Boredom. Max pain.
These feelings can come from words, yes. But they must be, from the speaker’s perspective, the truth. And from the heart.
Some of the greatest speeches, renowned for their words, were most impactful because of the feelings they roused. I Have a Dream Speech. Gettysburg Address. Any of Obama’s campaign speeches. Well written, but delivered with an energy that was unforgettable.
It’s the energy projected that sells seats. Makes bridesmaids cry. That starts revolutions.
Speak from the heart and with passion and with energy. Your words may not be remembered, but your speech will.
Towards any good run, it’s easy to forget why you started. To focus on satisfying your needs instead of the needs of your team. Of your congregation. Of your fans.
Maybe the thought is, “I deserve it”? I deserve to be a part of this team still. I deserve to speak about my fears. I deserve to write a TV finale that’s fun for me.
It’s the real legends and leaders and visionaries, though, that refuse the easy choice. That never forget where they came from. Or who got them where they are. Or why they started in the first place.
Towards the end, do you have the courage to do what’s not easy?
Which would you prefer? Shopping at Costco or shopping at CVS?
Buy-in-bulk vs. buy one-at-a-time.
Use most vs. use it all.
Use the best vs. use you got.
Isn’t that a good way to think about work? Do in bulk.
Who doesn’t prefer going to Costco? Just gotta get yourself there.
Slow and steady wins the race. Hearing that from you makes me want to punch you in the face. But, usually you’re right, don’t you know. Here’s some examples I’d like to show.
The guys in high school who got lots of girls cause he was a skater. Now he brings you and your hot wife your dinner cause he’s your waiter.
Today there’s a savvy web spammer who beats you in google page rank. Tomorrow you’ll have built something special, and of value, so will be laughing all the way to the bank.
Your friend that got married before you is no longer is your playmate. But fast forward 20 years and they’re back on JDate.
Rhyming is weird like a bump on a log. But publishing daily equals slow and steady, and that’s the plan for this blog.
Where do you get your news in the morning? Really, though. What’s the first thing you check when you wake up?
Do you turn on the Today Show? Do you scroll through Facebook? Do you check your email?
Getting your news in the morning feels good. It’s energizing and wakes you up. Almost as much as making your own, that is.
For my music at work, it’s $3 per month. That I paid to Pandora.
For my readers at lifeisnoyoke.com, it’s a typo here and there. That’s a cost not paid to an editor.
For the writer, it’s a longer walk to a quieter Starbucks. That’s paid in his time.
The costs to avoid interruption are small. But, to avoid commercial breaks, pop-up ads and loud talkers, the costs are completely worth it.
So, if the costs are so small, how come more people don’t pay?
It’s the easy stuff. The stuff within reach. The stuff that takes minimal effort, but gets you started. More than what you got, picking the low-hanging fruit gets you momentum.
Picking the low-hanging fruit gets you first 25%. Then, the next lowest hanging fruit gets you half way there. The next 25% is easy since you’ve already done twice that much. Finally the last 25% takes some strategy, but is why you started.
There are so many opportunities to use the low-hanging fruit principle. Start with the easy stuff and ride the momentum. Here are some real-life examples.
Grabbing the low-hanging fruit will get you started. And it will get you the momentum you need. Soon, all that’s left will be the fruit at the top.
But, just because picking the low-hanging fruit is good, doesn’t mean it’s all you should do. Because if you go from tree to tree without finishing, you’ll be left with a bunch of trees with a little fruit on top. And that’s not why you started.
Read more about getting the low-hanging fruit by reading “Switch”, one of my favorite resources.
Tons of fruit to pick. It was a massive undertaking. But, by getting momentum with the low-hanging fruit and then next lowest we were 50% done. Then, we brought the project to life by getting to 75% complete. Finally, the top of the tree was all that remained. And it needs to be picked.
The student’s paper is nothing without diction, voice and tone. The traveler’s suitcase is worthless without her toiletries. The weight-loss seeker’s Vitamix is just an expensive decoration if it sits idle.
It’s easy to forget the reason you started. And it’s easy to be satisfied with simply having started. Or being almost done. That’s sort of reverse-low hanging fruit. And now your brain is really messing with you.
Remember, it often takes the most strategy to finish the job.
And, the fruit at the top is high. You really have to push. But getting it all is the reason you started.